1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid applicator such as: cosmetic instruments comprising eyeliner brushes and nail-polish applicators; writing instruments comprising writing brushes; and liquid-drug applicators. Incidentally, in the following description, the term "application" includes the concept of "writing".
2. Description of the Prior Art
As shown in FIG. 6, hitherto, in a conventional liquid applicator provided with a brush tip 1 for applying an application liquid such as nail polish and the like, the brush tip 1 is constructed of a tuft of fibers, a rear-end portion of which tuft is so heated and compressed as to be partially fused and formed into a solid flange portion 2 of the tuft or brush tip 1 after cooling. The brush tip 1 is fixedly mounted in a front shaft 3 of the liquid applicator in which the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 is firmly sandwiched between: an inner shoulder portion 4 of the front shaft 3; and a front-end surface of a pipe-connecting piece 6 having been fixed to a main body or shaft sleeve of the liquid applicator. The pipe-connecting piece 6 is provided with an axial through-hole in its central portion, in which axial through-hole a guide pipe 5 is fixedly mounted so as to extend forward from the front-end surface of the pipe-connecting piece 6. In assembling of the liquid applicator, the brush tip 1 is first inserted into the front shaft 3 to form a front shaft assembly (1, 3), while the pipe-connecting piece 6 is inserted into a front-end opening of the main body or shaft sleeve of the liquid applicator to form a shaft sleeve assembly. After that, the thus assembled front shaft assembly (1, 3) is threadably connected with the shaft sleeve assembly so that the entire rear-end surface of the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 abuts on the entire front-end surface of the pipe-connecting piece 6. At the same time, an extended portion of the guide pipe 5 having been fixedly mounted in the pipe-connecting piece 6 is inserted into a central axial hole of the brush tip 1, as shown in FIG. 6.
Since the conventional liquid applicator having the above construction has the entire rear-end surface of the brush tip 1 abut on the entire front-end surface of the pipe-connecting piece 6, there is a fear that the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 is not adequately sandwiched between: the inner shoulder portion 4 of the front shaft 3., and the front-end surface of the pipe-connecting piece 6 when the thickness of the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 varies. Namely, in case that the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 is less in thickness than a predetermined value, it is impossible to firmly sandwich the brush tip 1 between the inner shoulder portion 4 of the front shaft 3 and the front-end surface of the pipe-connecting piece 6. In contrast with this, in case that the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 is more in thickness than the predetermined value, there a fear that the solid flange portion 2 of the brush tip 1 is excessively pressed between the inner shoulder portion 4 of the front shaft 3 and the front-end surface of the pipe-connecting piece 6 so as to be broken. These are problems inherent in the conventional liquid applicator.